Puerto Rico Islanders vs. Los Angeles Galaxy: Match day Commentary

The CONCACAF Champions league kicks off tonight as the Los Angeles Galaxy host the USL Puerto Rico Islanders at the Home Depot Center.

The Puerto Rico Islanders are currently in last place in their respective division while the Galaxy are currently the tops in Major League Soccer. The Islanders will look to add the Galaxy to their list of impressive MLS scalps that includes clubs like Toronto FC and Cruz Azul to advance to the CONCACAF Champion's League Group stage for the third time in three years. This is the first Champions League game for the Galaxy since 2006.

I will be providing commentary throughout the match so please feel free to follow along here. As always, feel free to share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action (Commentary is after the jump):

FINAL – The Galaxy's dreams of the CONCACAF Champions League are in flames tonight after a complete demolition at hands of the Puerto Rico Islanders as boos rain down on the field. The Island club, nicknamed the Grave Diggers, didn't get many chances tonight, but converted on every chance that they had. The match is the first time since September 12th, 2009 in a 6-3 loss to FC Dallas was the last time that LA gave up four or more goals. It will be back to the drawing board for LA who will need to rebound and win by a 4 goal result if they are going to advance. The Final is Puerto Rico Islanders 4 Los Angeles Galaxy 1

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90th Minute – The Galaxy are going to need a 3-0 result after this result in Puerto Rico to go through. Two minutes of stoppage

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88th Minute – The night gets a bit worse as Buddle goes down and gets up with a bit of a limp. LA pressing for the second goal. Juninho goes down after a hockey style check from the Islanders. No call there as the Islanders get a free kick.

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87th Minute – Stephens gets open in the box, but fires yet another ball into the air. Terrible shooting by LA in this match.

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85th Minute – Kendall Jagdeosingh with a few great moves against Stephens as the Galaxy try to push up.

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83rd Minute – Buddle takes it up and fires a week effort that deflects off of Richard Martinez for the goal. It's now 4-1 Puerto Rico.

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82nd Minute – GOAL!!! GALAXY! EDSON BUDDLE WITH THE G0AL

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81st Minute – Terrible defending right there. Lewis was caught completely out of position and Leonardo attempts to cover for Lewis and allows Addlery to fire in a goal from distance.

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80th Minute – ADDLERY ON THE BREAK AWAY AND HE PUTS IT IN. FOUR TO ZERO FOR THE ISLANDERS. WHAT A RESULT!

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78th Minute – Going to say that all flights to Houston should be canceled after this result. I can't imagine any of the Galaxy players taking part after this one.

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77th Minute – Bowen with a weak shot that goes out for a free kick at the Riot Squad end.

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75th Minute- WHAT A SAVE GUADETTE OFF THE JUNINHO FREE KICK. FINE ONE HANDED SAVE!

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74th Minute – Remember folks, Puerto Rico has had an abysmal season this year bringing up the rear in their respective conference. This is effectively their season right here and they have delivered tonight.

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72nd Minute – Los Angeles has been in need of a good wake up game after getting by on close results for a few weeks. I would imagine that this could be the wake up call that the team needs at the moment.

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70th Minute – Birchall with a close range shot that leads to a corner. The Trinidadian gets another chance off the corner, but Foley clears the effort.

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68th Minute – Lewis nearly buries it into his own net, but the Islanders earn the corner.

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66th Minute – Here's a telling stat for you. The Galaxy have given up 11 goals in 6 games in all competitions when they had 14 shuts in the 17 previous matches (includes all competitions and friendlies)

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64th Minute – The Double Sub is in. Bowen and Cazumba go in and Berhalter and Gordon come out.

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63rd Minute – Buddle serves up a great pass to Lewis, but he fires it OVER the net. terrible shot.

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62nd Minute – Donovan with a header near the goal line, but Guadette makes the save!

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61st Minute – Stunned faces on the Galaxy bench right now as a pair of subs are about to come on. Cazumba and Bowen.

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59th Minute – As one writer noted in the press box. This would be an epic comeback…

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56th Minute – The Ball goes off the post, but its a fantastic shot by the ex Galaxy player to the Islanders up by THREE goals. Shocking just shocking.

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55th Minute – THE GRAVE DIGGERS ARE HERE!! PUERTO RICO WITH A THIRD!!HANSEN WITH THE GOAL!!

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54th Minute – A lot of clammering for Bowen right now, but against this tightly organized defense, I don't know how his speed will help break the Islanders.

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52nd Minute – Fans of the All-Star game with every passing moment your chances of seeing a Galaxy player in the All-Star game are quickly dwindling.

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51st Minute – No changes at the half, but Kirovski and Kovalenko are up getting ready.

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45th Minute – And We're off.

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HALFTIME- Boos rain down on the Home Depot Center field as the Galaxy hand their heads and head into the dressing room. Poor defense and disappointing passing are currently dooming the Galaxy right now. The Islanders did a great job of weathering the storm and caught the Galaxy sleeping on two chances. At the Half Islanders 2 Galaxy 0.

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45th Minute – Jones with the cross and Berhalter caught sleeping on that play as Addlery fires it in. 2-0 to the Islanders. WOW. For all wondering. There is an away goals rule.

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45th Minute – GOAL!!! PUERTO RICO!!! ADDLERY!!!

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44th Minute – Poor corner kick from Donovan which is way too high for Buddle. Arena will probably be giving this team the hairdryer treatment in the dressing room at the half.

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42nd Minute – Dangerous free kick right now for the Galaxy. Donovan to take it.

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41st Minute – The Islanders are in a jovial mood. They've got what they wanted and are now dropping six men into the box during any Galaxy attack. They're doing an exceptional job closing up space on the Galaxy attackers and pushing them off the ball. Going to be a hard nut to crack today.

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39th Minute – Michael Stephens comes on for AJ DeLaGarza as Franklin will drop back to right back with Stephens taking over.

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38th Minute – A bit more pressure from the Galaxy who are unable to string together the last pass. Michael Stephens is about to come on. Bruce Arena will have no more of this line up.

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35th Minute – Franklin all alone on the shot, but he fires it deep into the stands. Horribly disappointing.

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34th Minute – The Galaxy look a bit frustrated as Michael Stephens gets up. I would expect him to come on shortly. LA is finding out fairly quickly why the Islanders are known as the "Sepultureros" or the Grave Diggers.

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31st Minute – WOW! Franklin with a great shot, but Horst clears the ball as it was approaching the line. Great few minutes from the Islanders.

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30th Minute – Inexcusable that the Galaxy defense are caught napping on that play. Foley was all alone off the rebound and there was nothing that Saunders could do on that play.

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28th Minute – Hansen with a corner into Horst who sends in a great shot that DeLaGarza clears off the line. Foley takes the rebound and punches it in. 1-0 to the Islanders.

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26th Minute – PUERTO RICO GOAL!! FOLEY!!!

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23rd Minute – Poorly taken corner and Berhalter with a poor header and the effort goes over the bar. Rare poor effort by Berhalter.

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22nd Minute – The effort goes through the box, but off an Islander. Corner on the opposite end.

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21st Minute – Donovan with a dangerous corner. Look for the goal to come soon.

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19th Minute – Donovan with a dangerous free kick that bounces around and goes out for a Galaxy throw in.

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15th Minute – Not a huge crowd on hand tonight but the Angel City Brigade and the Riot Squad are bringing the noise as always, along with the Galaxians.

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14th Minute – Gordon gets a great ball from Lewis, but he fires a point blank shot just wide of net. Ouch. He should have scored on that one.

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12th Minute – The Juninho effort goes just above the post. Beautifully taken effort. The Islanders force a free kick deep in the Galaxy zone.

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10th Minute – Free kick set up just outside the box. Juninho lining up to take it.

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7th Minute – Both teams doing a bit of exploring right now. Trying to feel each other out. I would expect the Galaxy to find holes in the Islanders defense soon.

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3rd Minute – The Puerto Rico Islanders keeper Gaudette makes a nice save. The Galaxy are attacking to the left of your computer screen.

Feel like for players in MLS, CCL proving to be oxymoronic. They’re told by team officials/league bigwhigs that tourney is impt but, at least in LA’s case, extra small crowd must surely make players feel like its the opposite.

It kills me how often coaches refuse to play their best lineup. Do you think Bruce Arena is thinking: hey wait, what if I played Tristan Bowen and Michael Stephens instead of DeLaGarza and Gordon? Because Gordon has been extremely wasteful–if he’s even decent, LA is up 1-0 instead of being down 1-0.

Do you think Arena called Bob Bradley to sign off on his poor lineup choice?

Here’s how I think it went:
ARENA: I’m thinking about playing two duplicative forwards, both of whom do basically the exact same things. I know I have an option for some variety–well-rested variety, at that–but who cares?

BRADLEY: Sounds great! I’m getting ready to start Ricardo Clark even though Maurice Edu does everything that Clark does, except better, and Robbie Findley again against Brazil. What can go wrong?!?!?

ARENA: Well, the players could fail in the exact same ways they always do.

Galaxy have to score three in a game in a half in order to move on assuming PR doesn’t score…… The way the Galaxy are playing, it looks like PR is going to the group stage. No wonder Ronaldinho was just using the Galaxy to get a contract from Milan… Sigh

Question. Why isn’t Ricketts starting? I mean how does a goalkeeper get fatigued? He can’t use that excuse. I think it’s inexcusable for him not to be starting for this game. Our only chance to win this tournament is going down the drain right now.

So if Puerto Rico is better than LA and LA is better than KC and KC just beat Manchester United. Then in some odd twist of results analysis for blog instigation purposes it appear Puerto Rico would win the EPL going away

LA is just not the same team they were a month ago. Not sure what happened, but they obviously peaked too soon. Now they’ll have to do some soul searching to see if they have what it takes to win the MLS Cup.

It’s discouraging to someone who supports the league so much and pushes it to everyone he comes across. TFC did well tonight and could have won by multiple goals. Not an LA fan, yet I’m so disappointed right now…

Just want to say get rid of Lewis, and Bruce Arena should loose his job to this embarrassment….. And Toronto I feel the same way, pushing this league on my friends, and the MLS is looking like S***. gutted

So here’s the situation for next week: The Galaxy have to fly 6-7 hours to Puerto Rico just days after their league game against Chicago. The players will be tired and know that they have to score 3 goals just to tie against a team which will pack it in even tighter than tonight. I’m sure they will have zero confidence in success.

can’t help to think what the score would have been if Omar Gonzalez and Ricketts were playing. Those 4 away goals that Puerto Rico scored are HUGE. Surprised the announcers didn’t make mention of that.

Well, a bit of a ugliness provided by the Galaxy tonight, lest anyone start to get too worked up about the MLS and its beating of Premiership teams. Still, I like the league and it is getting better; as it continues to grow, MLS will have a few setbacks like this one. I think the biggest disappointment is the LA fans: where are they? Had the team come out to a stadium full of support, the outcome might have been different. Not to excuse the players, they are professionals and need to approach the job as such. Also, the MLS is at least partly at fault for scheduling the All-Star game so close to these matches, especially after demanding that teams take this competition seriously. I mean, whatever the stakes, ManU is a bit more glamorous than Puerto Rico, and it is hard to keep players eyes averted from the sparkly, shiny team.
Finally, I remember the announcers of the Galazy-San Jose game claiming that Gordon was getting minutes as reward for hard work; this is nonsense, I hope, right? The least compelling reason to ever use a player is as a reward for hard work. This isn’t Little League; no one is signed up by their parents to participate and learn about being a member of a team; this is a professional league. Anyhow, the fact that Gordon is still employed by the MLS is beyond me. I’ve seen better forwards at youth games.

Ives, a 3-nil result by this limp Gals team will still not be enough. It away goals, and a 3-nil win ties up the series, yes but The Islanders still have 4 away goals and go through. This is the worst result possible and LA is most likely out.

I am a DC fan, but still ticked about the half-a$$ed approach that MLS teams take to this tournament. They get all hard and mighty to take on pre-season European teams but show up all limp for meaningful CCL games. Shame on the Gals, shame on their stars who must be contemplating playing tomorrow against a pre-seaon Manchester United and shame on The Bruce for failing to get this team up for this match. This is sickening, disturbing and infuriating…and I am a DC united fan.

also, i was embarrassed for eddie lewis tonight. absolutely ineffective with his crosses into the box, and that turnover and subsequent pathetic lack of effor to lead to the fourth goal was just atrocious

leanardo need to go back to brazil cause everytime he has been on the field is wen we leak soo many goal i mean that third goal he headed it RIGHT back to hansen and just stood there….and josh saunders really should have saved 2 of the goals today but noooo ….i mean come on where is gonzalez???or how about a guy name dunivant??or how about starting bowen???all i have to say it leanardo GO BACK TO BRAZIL CAUSE YOU SUCK juninho is the only to do good with cazumba doing decenty COME ON GALAXY GET THOSE 3 GOALS U CAN DO It

Upsets like this happen in other tournaments all the time. (Examples: Leeds United beat Man U. in last season’s FA Cup). LA will bounce back in the second leg, but maybe not enough to make up the goal difference.

This was a great opportunity for the Galaxy to shine and make the league look respectable yet they bring in a soft team and think the game is gonna be a roll over. PR came to play and make it happen. Playing at PR’s home will be very tough and hopefully LA will come to play and be out for some blood.

I think this game just shows that even though MLS teams may say they care about CCL…they don’t. Everyone must be thinking about the All-Star game tomorrow, which I would say is a joke, but if it brings in revenue then we have to keep it.

This was Bruce Arena mismanaging and not understanding. If your not putting your best guys out there, then play just as vanilla as they are and walk out w/ a 1-0 win.

Happy for Addelry…marked him throughout college and always had great respect for him. DC wasn’t the place for him….

First things first. How can you say that you are taking a competition seriously when you do not play your stating goal keeper, centerback, leftback, right midfielder, and forward? One who is an all star, and one who is arguably the leading canidate for rookie of the year.

Second, Alan Gordon is absolute garbage. He does not even hold up the ball well. So why does he continue to play? I rather see Tristan Bowen, or maybe even Javon Kirvoski start there.

Third, what was wrong with eddie lewis? He was terrible out there. Looked way to slow, and even his service into the box was poor.

Fourth, I thought the whole Landon Donovan not showing up for games was over now. I guess not, and as captian some blame needs to be put on him on not getting his team more motivated.

The only positive I can really take from this, is that maybe, MAYBE, the galaxy front office realize that we need some more talent and bring in a new player. Whether it be a proven forward or a midflield playmaker. Something needs to happen.

MLS teams look absolutely clueless when they have to encounter teams that bunker and play the counter. It happens time and time again in the CCL. I think part of this lack of ability to break down a bunkering team (especially in what I saw from LA tonight) is a general lack of ability to control their first touches and play the ball quick enough in small spaces.

I expect LA to loose when they play the return leg. I doubt Arena plays a starting lineup.

Furthermore, this is the rainy season. Chances are they’ll be playing this game with at least an inch of water on the field. That won’t exactly fit the Galaxy’s possession style. Not to mention, those are the conditions in which the Islanders beat all those Mexican teams.

In the end this was a missed opportunity. The Galaxy were my favorite to win the tournament and I really don’t see another MLS team taking it.

Look at all these people automatically casting the MLS off to the abyss after this result. Like people have said above, upsets HAPPEN! Everybody needs to stop bandwagoning everybody else’s ideas and opinions and actually form some for themselves. Yes, I know everybody is going to come back with the “but all the MLS teams lose to random pub teams in the CCL,” but that doesn’t mean that the MLS has less quality. Like mentioned above, its just like when Man U loses to a championship side or Inter loses to a Serie B side. Sh!t happens

i was just at a Harrisburg City Islanders friendly versus Philly Union. The D-3 team tied philly 1-1, i am beggining to think that soccer does not really require skill or ability, it is just a roll of the dice as to which team wins the game.

I’m a Gals fan, and this game just firmed up something I’ve been concerned with for a while.

The defense is not good unless it’s Franklin, Gonzo, Berhalter and Dunivant. ANY other defender hurts the team beyond repair. (Insert my usual rant about overrated brazilians here.) Gordon is a joke, as is Bitchall. The famed depth of the Gals is fine for mid-week MLS games, but NOT for CCL matches.

Pregame interview with Ricketts had him talking about how tonights game was a priority for him and the All Star game was secondary. He mentioned they’d decide after the game if he saw minutes at the All Star game. Strange. And what about Omar?

It was interesting to see a team with two players that were in the World Cup. One of them is getting looks from clubs like Fulham. The other has played in the Premier League and two top German teams. And they lost two a team that was captained by a player who was originally drafted by the Galaxy but wasn’t even offered a contract. Funny how soccer works some times.

Ahh BetaMale we meet again haha I was really just trying to piss people off and play devils’ advocate. As a galaxy fan I am extremely upset, but some of this is serious. We can’t just come to the ultimatum “oh MLS is shite because of this.”

Wow, what an embarrassing result, especially when most of the starters played. I don’t even like the Galaxy and I’m embarrassed for them and the league. These guys never learn that there are no easy games anymore, there just aren’t any.

When you put it that way…it does look pretty bad. But, didnt Real Madrid lose to a 2nd or 3rd tier team in the Copa del Rey last year? I think MLS is getting better but is not leagues above the USL. Conversely, I think the USL is better then most think.

Seriously? This might be the most ignorant comment on this thread so far. Have you all been watching soccer for a couple of months? Results like this happen…to any team. That is part of what makes it such an interesting game. The Galaxy dominated possession and created more chances, but the Islanders scored on all four of theirs. It certainly is a terrible result for LA, but it is not the end of the world and it does not mean that they wouldn’t beat the Islanders 24 out of 25 games.

How can you seriously call for Arena’s head after one result in a secondary competition? He has turned the LA Galaxy from a terrible team into the best in the MLS. In my mind, he is the best coach the MLS has.

Honestly, people need to give the Islanders credit and also understand that upsets like this happen. In my mind, the Islanders were lucky to go in to the half 2-0 up, considering LA dominated possession and chance creation. In the second half, the Islanders basically played with two lines of four defenders. It was always going to be difficult for LA to get back into the game…and in their efforts to do so they got stretched and caught on the counter for the final two Islander goals. It was a terrible game for the Galaxy, but these results happen. The Islanders played the game perfectly after they got an early goal and took advantage of the chances they received. This result does not prove that the Galaxy are not the best in the MLS or that the USL is on par with the aforementioned league; it proves that soccer can be an unpredictable game and that, with a little luck, an extreme underdog can demolish a far superior team.

Been to LA, Adam? It’s a pain to get to HDC on a weeknight. Most LA weeknight games are empty.

On top of that, LA was charging full-price for this game… which is simply ridiculous.

Also, the Galaxy’s fielded a B+ team, at best. No league-best defender, no league-best goalkeeper. A Donovan and Buddle who had their mind, surely, on tonight’s Man U matchup… a coach with the same. Substitutes (Lewis, Gordon) starting.